Trying to learn how to do pull ups but can only do 1 rep assited. How is it? If its really bad , where do you think I should start? Imgur: The magic of the Internet
Hey dude it’s a good start. How old are you mate, you look pretty young? The good thing about that is you’ve got plenty of time ahead of you
You can always try picking a number (say 10) and doing 10 lots of 1 rep throughout the day
Then either doing more total reps, or trying to do the 10 reps in as few sets as possible
You can do really slow eccentric (the lowering part) to get more stress through the muscle
Banded rows and face pulls will also help a lot of the stabilisers in your back build up.
For me, getting better at chins had always been about just doing them frequently
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It looks like he has access to bands… what about making a homemade lat pull down rig using the band? He’s obviously very light and I’m sure you could coke up with something pretty easy.
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So grease the grove that s sounds good! Do you have any tips on how to clean up my form a bit? I do have a hard time staying unshrugged and having a more even oull
Honestly mate I think your form is fine, as you get stronger it will likely take care of itself
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To add to what @kleinhound has suggested, here is a progression scheme I’ve used with a few individuals now to get them to their first real pull-up/chin-up.
This whole thing should be completed without a band. I like to do this for 4 sessions a week.
Basically, you spend 2 weeks focussing on slow, controlled eccentric-only reps, and then 2 weeks focussing on maximum-effort isometric holds at the top of your ROM (this is assuming you cannot do one pull-up unassissted yet). So for weeks 3 and 4, if you can only actively pull your body up 3 or 4 inches, you pull your body up that 3-4 inches and fight as hard as possible to hold your body there
For these 5 sets in question, I recommend spreading them throughout the day, rather than all at once in a single session, although both methods will work
4 Days per week
Week 1 Monday:
- 5 x 2 eccentric-only reps, 3s per eccentric
Week 1 Tuesday:
- 5 x 2 eccentric-only reps, 4s per eccentric
Week 1 Thursday:
- 5 x 2 eccentric-only reps, 5s per eccentric
Week 1 Saturday:
- 5 x 2 eccentric-only reps, 6s per eccentric
Week 2 Monday:
- 5 x 2 eccentric-only reps, 7s per eccentric
Week 2 Tuesday:
- 5 x 2 eccentric-only reps, 8s per eccentric
Week 2 Thursday:
- 5 x 2 eccentric-only reps, 9s per eccentric
Week 2 Saturday:
- 5 x 2 eccentric-only reps, 10s per eccentric
Week 3 Monday:
- 5 x 2 holding the top of your ROM (even if that’s the bottom), 3s per hold
Week 3 Tuesday:
- 5 x 2 holding the top of your ROM (even if that’s the bottom), 4s per hold
Week 3 Thursday:
- 5 x 2 holding the top of your ROM (even if that’s the bottom), 5s per hold
Week 3 Saturday:
- 5 x 2 holding the top of your ROM (even if that’s the bottom), 6s per hold
Week 4 Monday:
- 5 x 2 holding the top of your ROM (even if that’s the bottom), 7s per hold
Week 4 Tuesday:
- 5 x 2 holding the top of your ROM (even if that’s the bottom), 8s per hold
Week 4 Thursday:
- 5 x 2 holding the top of your ROM (even if that’s the bottom), 9s per hold
Week 4 Saturday:
- 5 x 2 holding the top of your ROM (even if that’s the bottom), 10s per hold
By the 5th week, you should definitely be able to perform full chin-ups/pull-ups. Once you can perform full chin-ups/pull-ups, greasing the groove as @kleinhound suggested with a daily (or whoever many days per week) rep total is excellent
If, during weeks 3 or 4 you find you are able to pull your body all the way to the top (i.e. you can do a full pull-up/chin-up) stop the program and move to the grease-the-groove method @kleinhound referred to
That sounds like a really, really, great plan! But I feel horrible because I’m recovering g from surgery and I can’t really jump up from stuff
Look up Dana Linn Bailey How To Get Your First Pullup
No worries man, hope you recover soon
This guide looks amazing! The only problem I have is that she didnt say how long we should run each progression
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On the inverted rows start as close to parallel as you can with good clean reps. Once you can do 3 set of 8-10 move to the next progression.
Work up to being able to do the dead hang for 30secs then on tonthe next progression.
Work up to 3 sets of 5-8 reps usingvthe heaviest band then go to the next band down for the same. 3 sets of 5-8 keep doing that until you get to the lightest band thatvoffers the least help. Then move to the next progression.
Top half hang. Work up to 20 secs. Whennyou can do that move to the next progression.
Work up to 3 sets of 5-8 reps on the lower half partials. Then move on to the top half partials. Once do can do 3 sets of 5-8 on that hopefully you will be strong enough to get a full push up.
Work on them 3-4 days a week until you reach the goal foe that exercise. Since you are just starting out it may take a bit. Don’t get discouraged just keep at it!
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I started out doing assisted pull-ups with bands. Then one unassisted pull up. I would set a goal for myself. 1 a day. Then 2. Then 3, and so on. Even if it took me all day to reach the goal. A year later I could do 10 unassisted pull-ups in a row. Perseverance is what it took.
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It wasn’t too long ago that I couldn’t do a pull-up either. Everyone here has given some great advice so I’d recommend you pick one method, run it for a good few weeks, and see what happens.
Also your form’s not too bad - as you improve your pull-up strength, it will get better and feel more natural, so don’t stress it too much.
One thing I wanted to add, since I’m a younger guy too - don’t worry too much if you feel like you’re not strong enough yet. My experience is that as you get a little older you’ll develop strength quite quickly. Just keep training and working hard and you’ll be in a great position to take full advantage of that natural growth.
Impressive. I particularly like that you don’t just plop down and you have good control on the eccentric. Others may disagree, but I think you should go out to the wider handles. This looks too narrow and you’re using a lot of arms right now and want to engage the lats more. Also worth dedicating half your time to underhand chinups.
If you’re recovering from surgery and still finding a way to work on something, you have a great approach and you will go far!
Thank you all!
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